This project is now complete! All audio files can be found on our catalog page: https://librivox.org/america-the-beautiful-by-katharine-lee-bates/
Each week a poem is chosen to be recorded by as many LibriVox volunteers as possible!LibriVox volunteers bring you 12 recordings of America the Beautiful by Katharine Lee Bates.<br>
This was the Weekly Poetry project for July 3, 2022. <br> ------<br>
In honor of The United States' 246th birthday on July 4th. Bates wrote the words as a poem originally entitled "Pikes Peak". It was first published in the Fourth of July 1895 edition of the church periodical, The Congregationalist. It was at that time that the poem was first entitled "America". (Summary by TriciaG & Wikipedia)
This week's poem can be found here.
New to recording? Please see our Newbie Guide to Recording for further instructions. A quick guide to our required technical settings can be found here. When you post your file, please tell the BC what name you would like to use in our catalog.
LibriVox recording settings: mono (1 channel), 44100 Hz sample rate, 128 kbps constant bit rate MP3. See the Tech Specs
Begin your reading with the abbreviated LibriVox disclaimer:
Leave 0.5 to 1 second of silence at the beginning.
Then read the poem:America the Beautiful by Katharine Lee Bates, read for librivox.org by [your name].
[Add, if you wish, date, and/or your location.]
At the end of your reading, leave a space and then say:O BEAUTIFUL for spacious skies,
..For amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties
..Above the fruited plain!
....America! America!
..God shed His grace on thee
And crown thy good with brotherhood
..From sea to shining sea!
O beautiful for pilgrim feet,
..Whose stern, impassioned stress
A thoroughfare for freedom beat
..Across the wilderness!
....America! America!
..God mend thine every flaw,
Confirm thy soul in self-control,
..Thy liberty in law!
O beautiful for heroes proved
..In liberating strife
Who more than self their country loved,
..And mercy more than life!
....America! America!
..May God thy gold refine,
Till all success be nobleness,
..And every gain divine.
O beautiful for patriot dream
..That sees beyond the years
Thine alabaster cities gleam
..Undimmed by human tears!
....America! America!
..God shed His grace on thee
And crown thy good with brotherhood
..From sea to shining sea!
Leave 5 seconds of silence at the end.End of poem. This recording is in the public domain.
Filename: americathebeautiful_bates_your initials in lowercase_128kb.mp3 (e.g. americathebeautiful_bates_klh_128kb.mp3)
Upload to the LibriVox Uploader: https://librivox.org/login/uploader
(If you have trouble reading the image above, please contact an admin)
MC to select: TriciaG
Copy and paste the file link generated by the uploader into a new post in this thread along with the file duration (mm:ss). Watch this thread for prooflistening notes.
When you post your link, please include your name as you would like it credited on the catalog page and any URL by which you would like it accompanied. (Note: This is only necessary if you have not done so for another project.)
Check back in a day or so for any feedback regarding your reading.
Deadline: Please submit your recording by 0600 GMT Sunday, July 10th (12:00 AM CST)
Please don't download or listen to files belonging to projects in process unless you are the BC or PL. Our servers are not set up to handle the greater volume of traffic. Please wait until the project has been completed. Thanks!
Magic Window:
BC Admin
Project Code: hLCVvbq5
And remember, anyone can suggest a poem or coordinate an upcoming Weekly Poetry project! If you'd like to suggest a poem or coordinate a future project, please visit this thread.
If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask! Just post in this thread.
And there IS a separate kind of beautiful sound involved in spoken recitation, of course. I'll think it over, see if I can tame my 'musicali' instinct enough to speak it. Thanks again.